Printing machine negative carrier



March 9, 1937'. `R s. HOPK|N$ I 2,073,304

PRINTING MACHINE NEGATIVE CARRIER 5 Original Filed No`v. 2; 1934IIIIMIl?llllllllllllllllllllllllIllllllllilllllll l In ATTORNEYSPatented Mar. 9, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PRINTING MACHINENEGATIVE CARRIER Jersey Original application November 2, 1934, SerialNo.

751,165. Divided and 1935, Serial N0. 14,330

9 Claims.

This invention relates to photography and particularly to a means forrapidly positioning exposure areas of a negative for printing. Oneobject of my invention is to provide a negative carv rier which can bequickly and easily loaded with a strip of film bearing a plurality ofpicture areas. Another object of my invention is to provide a printingmachine with a flat top or runway on which a negative carrier can berapidly moved to position various exposures of a negative held by thecarrier. Another object of my invention is to provide a guide-way forthe negative carrier, which will direct its movement across an exposureaperture. Another object of my invention is to provide an exposureaperture and negative carrier so arranged that negatives that runlengthwise or crosswise of a lm can be readily cared for. Still anotherobject of my invention is to provide a simple means of adjusting a guidefor a negative carrier and for moving a negative carrier with respect toan exposure aperture.

Other objects will appear from the following specification, the novelfeatures being pointed out in the claims at the end thereof.

In making photographic prints and particularly in making prints byprojection of small negatives, in order to make such printseconomically, it is necessary to provide a means for holding a negativepreferably in strip form so that the 3o various exposure areas can berapidly and accurately positioned for printing.

In my copending application Serial No. 751,165 for Enlarging printer,led November 2, 1934, of which the present application is a division, I

35 have shown a complete printing machine particularly designed formaking large size prints rapidly from small negatives.

The present application is particularly directed to the negative carrierand the means for rapidly 40 adjusting it to bring the various exposureareas over the printing aperture.

Coming now to the drawing, wherein like reference characters denote likeparts throughout:

Fig. 1 is a top plan View of printing machine 45 including an exposureaperture and a negative holder and guide constructed in accordance withand embodying a preferred form of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary section taken on line 50 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the negative holder in a partially openposition showing also the relation of the negative holder to theguide-rail.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view Q5 of the negative holdershowing the latch arrangethis application April 2,

(c1. sir-24) ment by which the hinged cover plate may be held in aclosed position to hold a film at.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary detail side elevation of the end of the negativeholder.

In accordance with a preferred form of my invention, a printing machinemay be provided with a table top I which has a flat surface upon which anegative holder designated broadly as 2 may move. The table top I mayalso support a bracket 3 shown in section, this bracket being adapted tocarry the platen and other mechanism fully shown in my copendingapplication above referred to. Beneath the table top there is mounted alamp-house 4, at one end of which there is provided an opening 5 whichmay be partially covered by a masking 6 with an opening 1, through whichlight may be projected upwardly by a suitable optical system fully shownand described in my copending application above referred to and also inmy copending application Serial No. 14,329, led April 2, 1935. The tabletop I likewise carries an opening 8 in which a chimney 9 is mounted forcarrying oi the heat from the printing lamp.

Coming now to the negative holder, I prefer to construct this of a pairof parallel bars I0 which are rabbeted at II to receive a plate of glassI2, this glass being held in position by means of plates I3 attached tomembers I0. The glass I2 should be of the plate glass variety and it isof an elongated shape, adapted to receive a strip of film bearing aplurality of exposure areas.

In order to hold a iilm flat on the plate I2, I provide a second plateI4, which is hingedly mounted with respect to plate I2 as indicated inFig. 4. The ends of the plate I4 are supported by metallic cross-barsI5, into which studs I6 are attached, these studs being passed throughthe handle Il and through spacing washers I8. The handle I'I ispivotally mounted at I9 upon a stud passing into one of the side railsI0. Thus, by swinging the handles I.'I upon their studs I9, plates I4and I2 are separated or brought together as the case may be.

In order to hold the cover plate I4 closed, I provide a latch elementconsisting of a hooklike member 20 having upper tapering edge 2|,attached by screws 22 to an element I0. This hook is adapted to engagean aperture 23 carried by the spring latch plate 24, this latch platebeing attached to handle I'I by the studs I8 and I9 and being aperturedat 25 to pass about the spacer I8. Thus, by pressing the spring in thedirection shown by the arrow in Fig. 4, the cooperating elements 20 and23 are released and plate I4 may be moved relative to plate l2.

In each of the side rails I0, as best shown in Fig. l, there are mounteda plurality of rollers 5 21. These rollers are carried in suitablegrooves 28 in members l0, as shown in Fig. 2, and they may turn uponsuitable trunnions 29. Thus, the

negative holder 2 can roll in a direction longitudinal to its lengthvery readily and somewhat re- 10 sist movement transversely of itslength. Each of the members is provided with a knurled edge 30, whichforms a rough surface, by which the negative holder can be convenientlymanipulated.

l In order to guide the negative holder accurately and rapidly over theflat surface I of the table top, l.' provide a rail 3| Which'- isprovided with an aperture 32 in one end to receive a pin 33 or 34, uponwhich the rail may turn. In order 20 to adjust the angular relation ofthe rail to the exposure aperture 1, there is a cam 35 or 36 carried bya knurled handle 31 or 38, mounted to turn upon a post 39 or 40, carriedin the table top. Thus, by turning a knurled handle, the 25 angle of theguide-rail 3|, with respect to the opening 1 can be readily adjusted.

- The reason iorhaving two studs 33 and 34 to support the rail 3| isthat one stud 33 may be used when the negatives run lengthwise of a lmto be held in the film holder and the opposite stud 34 may be used whenthe exposure areas run transversely of the lm. Both types of film inminiature sizes are now on the market. For the same reason, twoadjusting knobs 31 and 38 are employed, although it is, of course,understood that only one knob and one pin are used at a time.

The operation of this device is extremely simple. After selecting astrip of negatives with the exposure areas running lengthwise'of the lm,the operator swings plate |4 of the negative holder from plate l2 bymeans of the handles |1 and the latches 24 arranged atl each end of thenegative holder. 'Ihe negative is then passed be- 45 tween these platesand the holder is closed by moving the handle |1 downwardly until thecooperating latch elements 20 and 23 come into Contact. It mightbe -herepointed out that the advantage of having handles |1 at each end of thenegative holder is that the operators fingers will not come in contactwith either of the glass plates I4 or |2 during the loading operationand, consequently, finger-marks will be largely eliminated. 55 After thenegative has been placed in the holder, the holder is slid up againstthe guide-rail 3| and, if the exposure frames on the lm do not properlyregister with the light opening 1, a knurled knob 31 may be turned untilthe film does properly register. For acompletedescription of how thenegative may be registered with the exposure opening, reference may behad to my copending application Serial No. 751,165.

The operator then merely slides the negative holder a distance equal toeach exposure frame, each time an exposure is made, so that the negativecarrier 2 ismade to roll over the flat table top L0 It should be notedthat the negative holder is provided with a plurality of rollers 21,sothat when the end of the negative holder may project from the flattable top in making an exposure from one of the exposure areas at theend of a 55' lm, the frame will have a'suicient number of rollers stillon the table top to properly position the negative holder.

With a machine as above described, the negative is always held in theproper focal plane, because the corresponding glass plate |2 ispositioned a fixed distance above the table top to properly position thefilm relative to the rest of the projection printer which is shown in mycopending application Serial No. 751,165.

A negative holder which may receive an entire strip of lm bearing aplurality of exposures can, of course, be handled much more rapidly thanthe usual type of negative holder, because it is only necessary to loadthe holder once with each strip of film toY be printed. Moreover, thevarious separate exposure areas can be rapidly exposed-by -moving thenegative holder upon its rollers the distance of one exposure area and,since the negative holder is guided in its movement by the guide rail,it is a simple matter to successivelyexpose each of the areas on a stripof lm carried by my improved type of holder.

While I have shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention,it is obvious that changes in construction can be made without departingfrom my invention and I contemplate, as within the scope of myinvention, all changes as may come within the terms of the appendedclaims.

Having thus described my invention, what I declare is new and desire tosecure Yby Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a printing machine, the combination with a iiat support includinga substantially plane surface of considerable length and breadth and anexposure aperture, of a negative holder of elongated shape and includingwheels adapted Ato run over various parts of said plane surface, meansadapted to guide the negative holder relatively to the exposureapertureso that -When' moved on its wheels negative areas may beregistered with the exposure aperture and means for positioning thenegative guiding means in different positions relative to the exposureaperture.

2. In a printing machine, the combination with a flat support includinga large, substantially plane surface and an exposure aperture, of anegative holder of elongated shape and adapted to receive a film havinga predetermined number of exposure areas in strip form, anti-frictiondevices permitting the negative holder to roll over various areas of theplane surface of the flat support, means carried by the support forguiding the negative holder through a predetermined path and means forvarying the path by altering the position of the negative holder guidingmeans.

3. In a printing machine, the combination with a support including anexposure aperture, of a negative holder adapted to be :moved to bringnegatives over the exposure aperture, a guide for said negative holderincluding aY track pivotally mounted on the support, and an adjustablecam at the other end of the track for adjusting the track` upon itspivot and angularly with respect to the exposure aperture.`

4. In a printing machine, the combination with a support including anexposure aperture, of a negative holder adapted to be moved to bringnegatives over the exposure aperture, a guide for said negative holdercomprising a rail apertured at one end, a pin carried by the supportadapted to engage said rail aperture, a rotatable post carried bythesupport andcarryingacam adapted to engage the opposite end of saidrail, a handle for adjusting said cam and altering the angular relationof the rail to the exposure aperture whereby the relation of a negativeholder guided by the rail may be controlled.

5. In a printing machine, the combination with a flat support includingan exposure aperture, a negative holder, wheels on the negative holderon which said holder may move, a guide rail adjustably carried by the atsupport, a smooth rail contacting surface on the negative holder adaptedto contact with the guide rail, and knurled edges on the negative holderby which it may be moved across the exposure aperture.

6. In a printing machine, the combination with a at support including anexposure aperture, a negative holder, comprising a pair of hinged glassplates, a latch for holding the plates together and adapted to hold anegative iiat in between said plates, a pair of side rails carried bythe negative carrier adapted to support the glass plates and to guidemovement of the negative carrier, and means carried by the flat supportadapted to contact with a side rail to guide the movement of thenegative carrier on its wheels, each side rail including a knurled edgefor manually moving the carrier and holding it against the guidingmeans.

7. A negative carrier adapted to be used with printing machinesincluding an exposure aperture in a flat support including a pair ofside rails supporting a glass panel, a second glass panel hingedlysupported with respect tol the iirst, a plurality of rollers carried bythe side rails adapted to support the first mentioned glass plate in apredetermined position, the rollers being positioned inside of the siderails whereby there is a smooth exterior surface on the side railadapted to guide the negative carrier.

8. A negative carrier adapted to be used with printing machinesincluding an exposure aperture in a iiat support including a pair ofside rails supporting an elongated panel throughout the length of thetwo sides, a pair of end supporting plates carrying a second elongatedglass plate by its ends only, said end supporting plates being pivotallyattached to the side rails at the ends thereof whereby the hingedlymounted glass plate may be swung to and from the plate held by the siderails for loading lm therebetween and means included in an endsupporting plate for latching the glass plates together.

9. A negative carrier adapted to be used with printing machinesincluding an exposure aperture in a flat support including a pair ofside rails supporting an elongated panel throughout the length of thetwo sides, a pair of end supporting plates carrying a second elongatedglass plate by its ends only, said plates being pivotally attached tothe side rails whereby said glass plates may be swung to and from eachother for loading film therebetween, said end supporting platesincluding handles and latch elements for moving the second mentionedglass plate and latching it in a closed position.

ROY S. HOPKINS.

